Raton is a city in
Colfax County-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*83.8% White*0.5% Black*1.5% Native American*0.4% Asian*0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.6% Two or more races*10.1% Other races*47.2% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
,
New MexicoNew Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
,
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 7,282 at the 2000 census. It is the
county seatA county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of
Colfax County-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*83.8% White*0.5% Black*1.5% Native American*0.4% Asian*0.1% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.6% Two or more races*10.1% Other races*47.2% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
. The city is located just south of
Raton PassRaton Pass is a mountain pass on the Santa Fe Trail along the Colorado-New Mexico border in the United States. Raton Pass is a federally designated National Historic Landmark...
.
Name
Ratón is the
SpanishSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
word for a
mouseA mouse is a small mammal belonging to the order of rodents. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse . It is also a popular pet. In some places, certain kinds of field mice are also common. This rodent is eaten by large birds such as hawks and eagles...
(literally "small
ratRats are various medium-sized, long-tailed rodents of the superfamily Muroidea. "True rats" are members of the genus Rattus, the most important of which to humans are the black rat, Rattus rattus, and the brown rat, Rattus norvegicus...
"). The Raton Range and Raton Peak are located immediately north of the town. The Raton Range is a 75-mile long ridge that extends east from the
Sangre de Cristo MountainsThe Sangre de Cristo Mountains are the southernmost subrange of the Rocky Mountains. They are located in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico in the United States...
.
Raton PassRaton Pass is a mountain pass on the Santa Fe Trail along the Colorado-New Mexico border in the United States. Raton Pass is a federally designated National Historic Landmark...
and the
Raton BasinThe Raton Basin is a geologic structural basin in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico. It takes its name from Raton Pass and the town of Raton, New Mexico. In extent, the basin is approximately east-west, and north-south, in Huerfano and Las Animas Counties, Colorado, and Colfax County,...
are also named for the Raton Range.
The
post officeA post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
at this location was named Willow Springs from 1877 to 1879, then Otero from 1879 to 1880, and has been named Raton since 1880.
History
Raton Pass had been used by Spanish explorers and Indians for centuries to cut through the rugged
Rocky MountainsThe Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
, but the trail was too rough for wagons on the
Santa Fe TrailThe Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century transportation route through central North America that connected Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1822 by William Becknell, it served as a vital commercial and military highway until the introduction of the railroad to Santa Fe in 1880...
.
Raton was founded at the site of Willow Springs, a stop on the Santa Fe Trail. The original 320 acres (1.3 km²) for the Raton townsite were purchased from the
Maxwell Land GrantThe Maxwell Land Grant, also known as the Beaubien-Miranda Land Grant, was a Mexican land grant in Colfax County, New Mexico and part of adjoining Las Animas County, Colorado. This land grant was one of the largest contiguous private landholdings in the history of the United States...
in 1880. In 1879, the
Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe RailwayThe Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often abbreviated as Santa Fe, was one of the larger railroads in the United States. The company was first chartered in February 1859...
bought a local toll road and established a busy rail line. Raton quickly developed as a railroad, mining and ranching center for the northeast part of the New Mexico territory, as well as the county seat and principal trading center of the area.
Geography
Raton is located at 36°53′49"N 104°26′24"W (36.897082, -104.439912).
According to the
United States Census BureauThe United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 7.3 square miles (18.9 km²), all land.
Demographics
As of the
censusA census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 7,282 people, 3,035 households, and 1,981 families residing in the city. The
population densityPopulation density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 992.4 people per square mile (383.1/km²). There were 3,472 housing units at an average density of 473.2 per square mile (182.6/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 78.04% White, 0.23% African American, 1.59% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 16.19% from
other racesRace and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 3.53% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 56.96% of the population.
There were 3,035 households out of which 30.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were
married couplesMarriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 12.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.7% were non-families. 30.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.92.
In the city the population was spread out with 25.1% under the age of 18, 7.8% from 18 to 24, 24.9% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 18.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 94.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,028, and the median income for a family was $31,762. Males had a median income of $24,946 versus $18,433 for females. The
per capita incomePer capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $14,223. About 14.8% of families and 17.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.2% of those under age 18 and 10.4% of those age 65 or over.
Road
-
I-25In the U.S. state of New Mexico, Interstate 25 follows the north–south corridor through Albuquerque and Santa Fe. It replaced U.S. Route 85, which is no longer signed, but still exists in route logs sharing the I-25 alignment. I-25 starts in New Mexico at an interchange with I-10 in Las Cruces and...
-
US 87U.S. Highway 87 is a north–south United States highway that runs for 1,998 miles from northern Montana to southern Texas. Most of the portion from Billings, Montana, to Raton, New Mexico, is co-signed along Interstates 90 and 25...
-
US 64U.S. Route 64 is an east–west United States highway that runs for 2,326 miles from eastern North Carolina to just southwest of the Four Corners in northeast Arizona. The western terminus is at U.S. Route 160 in Teec Nos Pos, Arizona. The highway's eastern terminus is at NC 12 and U.S. Route...
Rail
- Raton Amtrak Station
The Raton Amtrak station is located at 201 South First Street in Raton, New Mexico. It occupies the former Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway depot, which was built in 1903...
is a stop on the Southwest ChiefThe Southwest Chief is a passenger train operated by Amtrak on a 2256-mile BNSF route through the Midwestern and Southwestern United States. It runs from Chicago, Illinois, to Los Angeles, California, passing through Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and California...
route.
Recreation
Sugarite Canyon State ParkSugarite Canyon State Park is a state park of New Mexico, USA, featuring a historic early-20th Century coal-mining camp and natural scenery at the border of the Rocky Mountains and the Great Plains...
is located 12 miles (19.3 km) NE of Raton, NM. Elevation 8,800 ft (2,682 m). Camping, Fishing, Hiking.
NRA Whittington Center - Located 15 miles (24.1 km) SW of Raton, NM. Largest
NRAThe National Rifle Association of America is an American non-profit 501 civil rights organization which advocates for the protection of the Second Amendment of the United States Bill of Rights and the promotion of firearm ownership rights as well as marksmanship, firearm safety, and the protection...
shooting range in the US. National Competitions. High power rifle, skeet.
The
United States Fish and Wildlife ServiceThe United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats...
manages the Maxwell National Wildlife Refuge which is located approximately twenty-five miles south of Raton. The refuge offers excellent birding opportunities during the spring and fall migrations. It consists of several lakes, fields and woodlots managed for birds and the areas other wildlife.
The
Philmont Scout RanchPhilmont Scout Ranch is a large, rugged, mountainous ranch located near the town of Cimarron, New Mexico, covering approximately of wilderness in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of the Rocky Mountains of northern New Mexico...
is the largest youth camp in the world by size and number of participants. It is owned and operated by the
Boy Scouts of AmericaThe Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
used as a National High Adventure Base in which crews of Scouts and Venturers take part in backpacking expeditions and other outdoor activities. It is located five miles south of
Cimarron-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 917 people, 382 households, and 255 families residing in the village. The population density was 479.5 people per square mile . There were 449 housing units at an average density of 234.8 per square mile...
, New Mexico, another outpost on the old Santa Fe Trail.
Raton was the site of New Mexico's first horse racetrack, La Mesa Park, which closed in 1992. In 2008, the New Mexico Racing Commission approved a proposal to build a new racetrack in Raton. The facility is expected to open in 2010.
Notable natives and residents
- Tom W. Blackburn
Thomas Wakefield Blackburn II , was an American author, screenwriter and lyricist. His work included various Western novels and television screenplays, as well as the lyrics to "The Ballad of Davy Crockett" and other songs.-Biography:Born the eldest of six children on the T.O...
- Western writer who also wrote the lyrics to "The Ballad of Davy Crockett"The Ballad of Davy Crockett" is a song with music by George Bruns and lyrics by Thomas W. Blackburn.The first recording of the song was made by Fess Parker, quickly followed by versions by Bill Hayes and Tennessee Ernie Ford...
"
- The Fireballs
The Fireballs, sometimes billed as Jimmy Gilmer and the Fireballs, is an American rock and roll group, particularly popular at the end of the 1950s and in the early 1960s...
- Rock Band who had a number one hit with 1963's "Sugar Shack" and "Bottle of Wine, Fruit of the vine"
- Edwin Fullinwider
Edwin Fullinwider was an American Olympic fencer. He competed at the 1920 and 1924 Summer Olympics.-References:...
- Olympic fencer
- Steven F. Havill
Steven F. Havill is an American author of mysteries and westerns.Havill lives in Ratón, New Mexico, with his wife Kathleen. He has written two series of police procedurals set in the fictional Posadas County, New Mexico; along with other works....
- Writer of Mysteries and Westerns.
- John Morrow
John Morrow was a United States Representative from New Mexico. He was born near Darlington, Wisconsin. He attended the public schools and the normal university. Later, he taught school in Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska, and New Mexico. He was the superintendent of public schools of Colfax County, New...
- United States Representative from New Mexico
- John R. Sinnock
John Ray Sinnock was the eighth Chief Engraver of the United States Mint and designer of the Roosevelt dime and Franklin half dollar, among other U.S. coins. His initials "JS" on the dime can be found at the base of the Roosevelt bust...
- US Mint engraver known for work on the FDR dime
- Robert W. Warren
Robert Willis Warren was a United States federal judge and politician from Wisconsin.Warren was born in Raton, New Mexico. He received a B.A. from Macalester College in 1950, an M.A. from the University of Minnesota in 1951, and a J.D. from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1956...
- Attorney General of Wisconsin
- Bennie L. Woolley, Jr.
Bennie L. "Chip" Woolley Jr. is an American Thoroughbred horse racing trainer best known for conditioning the 2009 winner of the Kentucky Derby. One of the five children of Ann and Bennie Woolley, Sr., he grew up in Dalhart, Texas where his parents still live...
- racehorse trainer who won the 2009 Kentucky DerbyThe Kentucky Derby is a Grade I stakes race for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses, held annually in Louisville, Kentucky, United States on the first Saturday in May, capping the two-week-long Kentucky Derby Festival. The race is one and a quarter mile at Churchill Downs. Colts and geldings carry...
See also
- Raton Downtown Historic District
The Raton Downtown Historic District is a Registered Historic District in Raton, New Mexico, USA. The district is bounded on the north by Clark Avenue and on the south by Rio Grande Avenue. On the east the district is bounded by First Street, and on the west the district is bounded by Third Street...
- National Old Trails Road
Further reading
External links